2891949 , p. 3). Hence, there was a need to solve the situation for the reason that scien-
tific research is essential to the growth and development of a post-World War II
Philippines. It is an instrument that could make the Philippines competitive in the
modern world by having “strong scientific units and utilize to the fullest extent all
available resources of science” (Uichanco 1949 , p. 3). However, due to the
“unwholesome situation” brought about by lack of support from the government,
local scientific output was insufficient. The Philippine society borrowed research
findings from foreign countries and adapted them for local use. It has made the
Philippines parasitic to foreign research findings (Uichanco 1949 , p. 3).
Research activities became personal for Filipino researchers. Researches were
conducted due to the interest and initiative of the researcher as well as through pri-
vate funding (Uichanco 1949 , p. 3). These research activities, however, were limited
only to educational purposes such as writing master’s thesis and doctoral disserta-
tion. But most of these theses and dissertations and other researches were never
been read and heard, because these were never published. The “job of writing in
many cases is fully as hard as or harder than the actual conduct of research”
(Uichanco 1949 , p. 5).
That was the situation of research in Philippine higher education 67 years ago in
the eyes of Uichanco. There was lack of funding that resulted to poor research activ-
ity in terms of quality and quantity. Beyond the issue of funding was a more serious
problem of lack of consciousness about the importance of research to national
building. That research should not be confined within the walls of academic institu-
tions and should not be seen only as an academic exercise and activity. Research
provides new knowledge that could be used to solve the problems of the Philippine
society and new knowledge that could be utilized for growth and development.
Because of this lack of consciousness, another more serious problem has occurred –
the parasitic attitude. It is an attitude of borrowing of foreign research findings to be
applied locally.
The Present Status of Higher Education Research
After 67 years, research in Philippine higher education is still “at its infancy age”
(see Licuanan 2014 , p. 6). This is a challenging reality that led Philippine higher
education to give emphasis on research. Research has become one of the three inte-
gral missions that define a higher education institution (Licuanan 2014 , p. 6). The
other two are instruction and community extension. The integration of research to
instruction and community extension means that doing research in higher education
is building the research capacities of the young Filipinos through classroom instruc-
tion and community extension (Licuanan 2014 , p. 6). On the other hand, it also
means that research produces knowledge that enhances the quality of classroom
instruction and knowledge that can improve the well-being of stakeholders outside
the campus and of the larger Philippine society (Licuanan 2014 , p. 6).
16 Higher Education Research in the Philippines: Policies and Prospects